Young Andrew loves flowers and growing things, but when he looks at the gardens in his neighborhood, he’s astounded at how big they are. At first, he’s overwhelmed, but then he makes a decision. He will make a garden in his own way.
With a small shovel, Andrew digs up a tiny rectangle in his front lawn. A nosy, skeptical neighbor who stops by to watch Andrew work asks, “Is that a garden?” The neighbor offers his opinion: the garden needs to be bigger, and a tiny rectangle can hardly be considered a garden. To each of the neighbor’s comments, Andrew calmly replies, “This will be a tiny garden.”
Andrew continues to work. He enjoys the smell of the overturned soil. He relishes planting tiny seeds in the ground, and carefully waters his tiny garden. He knows he needs to be patient, and he is. Day after day, he waits, and soon there is “a tiny, perfect jewel box of a garden in front of Andrew’s house.”
Andrew’s neighbor is still cynical: “But what is the point? You can’t walk in it. You can’t sit in it. You can barely see it!”
Andrew is undeterred, and as he continues to observe his tiny garden, he is rewarded by visits from a tiny moth, a tiny earthworm, a tiny hummingbird, and a tiny ladybug. Though his neighbor doesn’t see the value of a tiny garden, Andrew does, and that is enough for the tiny gardener.
Parents and caregivers who read this magnificently illustrated, charming book with children might want to encourage them to make their own tiny gardens to help them experience the wonders inherent in God’s creation: the properties of soil, the way seeds germinate and plants grow, how watering plants is necessary for their survival, and how all of creation brings glory to God, the Creator.
(Abrams Books for Young Readers)